BALTIMORE — Roca Baltimore released a report Thursday on the progress that has been made since it came about in 2018.
The report includes internal and external data of Roca Baltimore having an impact on young people, violence intervention and medical costs.
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Through its first four years, Roca Baltimore worked with 445 of the city's high risk youth. Among those years Roca highlighted in the report that:
- Of the 84 young men enrolled for two years or more, just 21 percent (18 of 84) were arrested and just 2 percent (2 of 84) were incarcerated on a new charge.
- Of all 445 young men, only 18 percent were dismissed for long-term incarceration. In comparison, the three-year recidivism rate for all Maryland emerging adults, regardless of risk level, is 46 percent.
According to Roca’s external evaluator, MDRC, young people in the first two years of enrollment had an arrest rate that was 16 percent lower than comparable young people who do not engage
with Roca. The vast majority of those arrests occurred during the first year of their engagement with Roca and many returned to the program.
- Although Baltimore’s overall murder rate increased by 9 percent from 2018-2021, homicides among young people under 25, the population Roca works with, dropped by 7 percent, homicide victims under 25 years old dropped by 8 percent and non-fatal shooting victims under 25 dropped 3 percent.
“In a city with the nation’s second highest murder rate, where more than 25 percent of the population lives below poverty level, we are witnessing remarkable changes, big and small for one young person at a time and we have reason to be hopeful,” said Molly Baldwin, Founder and CEO of Roca.
Also in the report, Roca analyzed the financial impact:
- Four years of Roca costs $40,725, 83 percent less than four years in the Maryland Department of Corrections at a price tag of $238,464. Those figures skyrocket when considering the average DOC stay for men is 74 months.
- Roca’s work allowed the state of Maryland to avoid nearly $12 million in marginal incarceration costs over four years (even when measuring all risk levels while Roca only serves the most at-risk for recidivism).
- Roca’s after-shooting protocol pilot program, by the most conservative financial analysis, resulted in nearly $1.5 million in avoided medical costs from repeat gunshot victimizat
“This data shows that Roca has been a wise, prudent and impactful investment in Baltimore,” said Augie Chiasera, a Roca Board Member and President of M&T Bank, Greater Baltimore/Chesapeake Region. “We know there is no panacea to the violence on our streets but Roca is having an impact, day- to-day, person-by-person in meaningful, measurable ways.”
Roca also stated that they plan on doubling down on its work in Baltimore.
READ MORE: 'They’re not criminals': Roca Baltimore expanding into Essex
Some of that work will include the Roca Impact Institute to training 2,000 police officers in a specialized Rewire program.
"The express purpose of Rewire4 is to provide officers the practical knowledge and tools to overcome the challenges associated with trauma exposure and emotional regulation," said Commissioner Michael Harrison. "Given the daily challenges of our profession, some of them unique to this moment in history, this training is long overdue."
